Method of making garments of knitted fabrics

ABSTRACT

A METHOD OF MAKING A GARMENT WHICH COMPRISES MOUNTING ON A MOLDING FORM SO AS TO COVER ITS SIDE CIRCUMFERENTIAL SURFACE, A TUBULAR KNITTED FABRIC OPENED AT BOTH ENDS, AT LEAST 30% OF WHICH IS COMPOSED OF A THEMOPLASTIC SYNTHETIC FIBER, EXERTING A TENSION ON THE KNNITTED FABRIC IN THE DIRECTIONS OF ITS OPEN ENDS TO THEREBY DECREASE THE DIMENSIONS OF THE TUBULAR KNITTED FABRIC IN THE DIRECTION OF DIAMETER UNTIL IT FITS TO THE SIDE CIRCUMFERENTIAL SURFACE OF THE MOLDING FORM, HEAT-SETTING THE TUBULAR KNITTED FABRIC UNDER THE APPLICATION OF SUCH TENSION, AND THEREAFTER REMOVING THE MOLDED FABRIC FROM THE MOLDING FORM.

June 25, 1974 Kwosm OGAWA ETA!- HEIHOD or mine GARIENTS 0? Filed oat.18, 1971 KNITTED FABRICS 11 Shee ts-She'et 1 June 25, 1974 KRYQSHI AwETAL 3,819,638

4:00.01 mxmcemusn'rs 0F KNITTED FABRICS Filed cm. 18, 19*71 11Sheets-Sheet a June'25, 1974 KIYOSHI OGAWA ETA!- 3,819,535

ITHOD OF MAKING GARIENTS OF KNITTED FABRICS 7 Filed 0C1}. 18, 19 71 11Sheets-Sheet a June 25, 1Q? Kwosm OGAWA ETAL 3,819,638

union OF mime emusms or x'nn'rnn msiucs Filed 0&1. 18,1971 11Sheets-Sheet June 25, m4 os, 05AM ETAL 3,819,638

UBIHOD OF MAKING GARHENTS 0F KNITTED FABRICS Filed on. 18, 1971 v 11sheets-sh et June 25, 1974 KIYOSHI OGAWA ETA!- 3,319,633

METHOD OF BAKING GARHENTS OF KNITTED FABRICS I 11 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed00%.. 18, 1971 METHOD OF MAKING GARIENTS 0F KNITTED FABRICS Filed 06%.w, 1971 v 11 Sheets-Sheet 7 I Fig. 9-0

N 0 (cm) IOO MINIMUM CIRCUMFERENTIAL LENGTH OF MOLDING FORMCIRCUMFERENTIAL LENGTH OF TUBULAR KNITTED FABRIC LICmI I Fig.9-b

MINIMUM CIRCUMFERENTIAL LENGTH OF SLEEVE). MOLDING 0 (cm FORM I l l l lCIRCUMFERENTIAL LENGTH OF TUBULAR KNITTED FABRIC LICITI) .Fune 25, m

Kwosm OGAWA ETAL ,638.

METROD OF MAKING GARIENTS OF KNITTED FABRICS Filed on. 18, 1971 11Sheets-Sheet s June K|YQ5H| OGAWA ETAL 3,819,638 M27801) OF MAKINGcmmnn'rs 0F KNITTED mamas Filed Oct. 18, 1971 v 11 Sheets-Sheet 9 1 914KEYQSH] QGAWA EFAL 3,819,638

HBTHOD OF MAKING GAHIENTS 0F KNITTED FABRICS F1161! cm. 18, 1971 11Sheets-Sheet 10" JIIIIG 25, 1974 wosm OGAWA EI'AL 3,819,638

METHOD OF MAKING GARIEN'I'S 0F KNITTED FABRICS F1166 Oct. 18, 1971 11Sheets-Sheet 11 United States Patent 3,819,638 METHOD OF MAKING GARMENTSOF KNITTED FABRICS Kiyoshi Ogawa, Hirakata, and Seiji Koyama andTakehiko Michihara, Ibaraki, Japan, assignors to Teijin Limited, Osaka,Japan Filed Oct. 18, 1971, Ser. No. 189,918 Claims priority, applicationJapan, Oct. 10, 1970, 45/ 92,212 Int. Cl. B29c 17/02 U.S. Cl. 264-292 3Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A method of making a garment whichcomprises mounting on a molding form so as to cover its sidecircumferential surface, a tubular knitted fabric opened at both ends,at least 30% of which is composed of a thermoplastic synthetic fiber,exerting a tension on the knitted fabric in the directions of its openends to thereby decrease the dimensions of the tubular knitted fabric inthe direction of diameter until it fits to the side circumferentialsurface of the molding form, heat-setting the tubular knitted fabricunder the application of such tension, and thereafter removing themolded fabric from the molding form.

This invention relates to a method of making a garment conforming wellto a body pattern, the garment being made of a knitted fabric withlittle or no need for such steps as cutting or sewing which arecomplicated and costly.

More specifically, the invention relates to a method of making garmentby a process comprising mounting on a molding form so as to cover itsside circumferential surface, a tubular knitted fabric opened at bothends, at least 30% of which is composed of a thermoplastic syntheticfiber, preferably a tubular knitted fabric in which the circumferentiallength at its transverse section is longer than the minimumcircumferential length of the molding form and it is not more than 4times the minimum circumferential length of the molding form, preferablysubjecting the tubular knitted fabric to a dart treatment before orafter the mounting of the fabric on the molding form so as to adjustthat part of the knitted fabric which covers the curved surface of themolding form from the neck to the shoulder to the molding form, applyinga tension to the knitted fabric in the direction of the open ends of theknitted fabric mounted on the molding form thereby shrinking the tubularknitted fabric until it fits to the side circumferential surface of themolding pattern in the direction of the tubular diameter, heat-settingthe knitted fabric under such tension, and then removing the knittedfabric from the molding form.

The conventional method of making garments of knitted fabrics requiressuch steps as cutting or sewing which are complicated and costly. Inorder to form a threedimensional curved surface suited well to a givenbody pattern, such as the bosom or waist, it has been the practice tomake a model pattern from the prototype, place the model pattern on aknitted fabric, cutting the fabric, and sewing the cut pieces together;or make a fiat pattern by draping, and perform the above-mentionedoperations using it as a model pattern. Such a conventional methodrequires a high level of technique and is time-consuming, and alsodisadvantages such as cut loss cannot be avoided.

Another method of making garments from a knitted fabric comprisesincreasing or decreasing the number of stitches during the knittingstep, thereby form pieces of knitted fabric in the form of the cutpieces as mentioned above, and sewing or knitting them together. Thismethod is complicated in the knitting operation itself and such knittedfabric is outside the scope of the tubular knitted fabric used as thestarting material in the present invention.

It has now been found that garments as final product can be made withlittle or no need for such complicated steps of the conventionalmethods.

It has now been found that when a tension is applied to a tubularknitted fabric opened at both ends in the direction of the axis of thetubular fabric utilizing not the heatshrinkability of the filamentsthemselves which constitute the fabric but the stretchability of theknitted fabric ascribable to the knitted texture of the fabric, thefabric shrinks in the direction of its tubular diameter, and therefore,it is possible to decrease the dimensions of the tubular knitted fabricso that it fits to the side circumferential surface of the molding form,and that when the knitted fabric is heat-set under such tensionconditions and then the knitted fabric is removed from the molding form,a garment or its main part can be made with little or no need for thecomplicated and disadvantageous steps.

It has also been found that the garment so made retains filaments ofuniform quality throughout the garment and has superior feel andappearance, unlike the case of fitting the fabric to the molding form byheat-setting utilizing the heat-shrinkability of the filamentsthemselves, such as filaments having latent crimps.

It has also been found that the knitted fabric develops a unique andinteresting pattern which is formed when the knit texture of the knittedfabric is fitted by tension to the curved surface of the molding form,and which is not seen in the conventional products.

It has also been found that since the fitting of the knitted fabric tothe molding form is performed by the stretchability of the fabricascribable to the knit texture itself of the knitted fabric, there is norestriction on the heat-shrinkability of the filaments that constitutethe fabric, and also thermoplastic synthetic fibers which can beheat-set can be used in accordance with the present invention.

It has been found that if, for example, a one-piece dress is made from aknitted fabric in accordance with the present invention, all or most ofthe 18 darts or so which are needed in the conventional method can beomitted, and the fittability of the garment to the wearer can bemarkedly improved over the conventional products, and that the number ofsewing steps, which is about 73 in the conventional method, has beenreduced to about 33 steps with the time needed to make the product beingreduced to half, and that the cut loss occurring in the conventionalmethod is reduced about 30-40% for each garment, and the garmentsproduced are superior with respect to quality and cost of production.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a methodof producing garments of knitted fabric well suited to a given bodypattern by omitting all or most of the complicated and costly steps suchas cutting or sewing.

Many other objects and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent from the following description.

The material used in the present invention is a tubular knitted fabricopened at both ends, at least 30% of which is composed of thermoplasticsynthetic fibers. Examples of such thermoplastic synthetic fibersinclude polyester fibers, polyamide fibers, poyacrylonitrile fibers, andpolyvinyl chloride fibers. The knitted fabric may consist of at leastone kind of such thermoplastic synthetic fibers, or a mixture of atleast one kind of such thermoplastic synthetic fibers with other fibers,for example, natural and/or regenerated fibers. The only requirement asto the c0mposition of the material is that at least 30% of the knittedfabric consists of a thermoplastic synthetic fiber. The form andproperties of the yarn used for producing the knitted fabric may bevaried as desired. If the content of the thermoplastic synthetic fiberis less than 30% by weight, the effect of heat-setting is poor.

The knitted fabric is used in the form of a hollow cylinder having bothends opened. The tubular form may be produced at the time of producingthe knitted fabric, or by sewing both edge portions of a fiat knittedfabric.

Then the tubular knitted fabric of the above description is mounted on adesired molding form so as to cover its side circumferential surfaces,and a tension is applied to the fabric by a proper means in thedirection of the ends of the knitted fabric, for example by pulling bothopen ends to directions opposite to each other, the knitted fabric isdecreased in size in the direction of the tubular diameter owing to theinherent properties of the knit texture itself. The tension at this timeis such as to fit the knitted fabric to the curved surfaces consistingof concavities and convexities of the molding form, and when the knittedfabric is heat-set (after heating, cooling positively or spontaneously)under the above-mentioned tension conditions without releasing thetension, the thermoplastic synthetic fiber in the knitted fabric is setto a form fitting to the molding form. The knitted fabric is removedfrom the molding form thereby producing a garment or its main part.

Several embodiments of the garments in accordance with the presentinvention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawingsin which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one example of the molding form formaking a one-piece dress shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 3 is a schematic flow-sheet illustrating one example of making aone-piece dress in accordance with the present invention using thismolding form.

The molding form is made in a size which allows fullness of the body,overlap, seam allowance, etc. As shown in FIGS. 3-1 and 3-2, a tubularknitted fabric opened at both ends, at least 30% by weight of which iscomposed of a thermoplastic synthetic fiber, is mounted on the moldingform so as to cover the side circumferential surface of the moldingform. Then both open ends of the fabric are pulled in directionsopposite to each other (the directions of arrows in FIG. 3-3 and FIG.34) to exert a tension on the fabric in the directions of the open endsof the fabric. This results in the decrease in size of the tubularknitted fabric in the direction of the tubular diameter owing to theknit texture. Therefore, those portions which have not fitted to themolding form 1, for instance those covering the neck, shoulders, upperbosom, or waist fit to the molding form 1 as shown in FIG. 3-3 and FIG.3-4. Under this tension the knitted fabric is placed in a heat-setchamber 3 in FIG. 3-5, and is heated by wet or dry heat which does notdamage the material, such as hot air or steam, or by an infrared heatingmeans, followed by positive or spontaneous cooling, thereby heat-settingit on the molding form. The heating may be performed by introducing hotsteam into a molding form made of a heat-resistant material such as ametal. If desired, the cooling can be carried out in the same way.

Various means for applying a tension to the tubular knitted fabricmounted on the molding form in the directions of the open ends of thefabric can be employed in the invention. Specifically, the applicationof tension may be carried out by pulling both ends of the fabric indirections opposite to each other, or by pulling one end of the fabricwhile fixing the other.

FIGS. 4-a and 4-b show one example of this invention, especially darttreatment of that part of the knitted fabric 2 which covers a curvedsurface ranging from the neck to the shoulders of the molding form inorder to ensure the fitting of the fabric to that part of the moldingform. After this treatment, the bottom end of 4 the knitted fabric ispulled downwards to fix the fabric on molding form 1.

The term dart treatment means the introduction of a dart and itssubsequent fixation. This may be accomplished by any desired means suchas ordinary dart stitching or holding of a part corresponding to thedart with a clip. The dart treatment is effected on both right and leftside on the shoulder line in ordinary dressmaking. The shape and numberof darts may however be changed according to the design of the garment.

The tubular knitted fabric 2 is mounted on the molding form 1 so as tocover the side circumferential surface of the molding form as shown inFIG. 4-a. As shown in FIG. 4-b, the darts are held with clips 4, and thebottom of the knitted fabric is pulled downwards by a number of hooks 5thereby ensure the fitting of the knitted fabric more to the curvedsurface ranging from the neck to the shoulder of the molding form. It isthus possible to pull only the bottom end of the knitted fabric and toexert the desired tension on the knitted fabric.

The heat-set knitted fabric can be removed from the molding form bycutting a part of the fabric which corresponds to the open part of thegarment or the seaming portion. For instance, in the case of a one-piecedress having an opening at the front center line, the fabric can beremoved by cutting the front center line. If the garment is is to havean opening at the shoulder, the shoulder line of the knitted fabric iscut to remove it from the molding form. If it is desired to provide anopening at the back, the back center line is cut. The garment, ifdesired, is subjected to simple finishing to give a product of superiorquality.

:In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, a garment witha collar can be provided. For example, as shown in FIGS. 5-a and 5b(perspective view) an annular hold member 6' having the desired neckopening shape is mounted on the molding form. One end of the tubularknitted fabric 2' mounted on the molding form 1 is pulled in thedirection of the arrow, and the other end (not shown) is pulled in theopposite direction. The tubular knitted fabric is then heat-set underthis tension, and then a suitable part of portion 2 pulled upwardly ofthe molding form, for example back, neck or throat portion, is cut openand folded back to form a collar. The hold member should preferably bemade of metal. If desired, the molding form is made of a metal capableof becoming magnetic, and the hold member is made of a magnet.

Alternatively, as shown in FIG. S-c (sectional 'view), a rolled collarmay be made by changing the direction of pulling the neck portion asshown by the arrow.

According to other embodiments, garments with a front opening can beproduced as shown in FIGS. 6a, 6-b, 6-0 ,and 6-d. The details will bespecifically given in the examples which appear later in thespecification.

The garments according to the present invention include not only thosefor covering the upper half of the body or the entire body, such asupper garments, overcoats, sweaters, blouses, one-piece dresses,jumpers, or waist coats, but also those for covering the bottom half ofthe body, such as slacks, trousers, or skirts.

FIG. 7-a shows one example of a molding form 1 for making slacks inperspective view. A tubular knitted fabric 2 is mounted on the moldingform so as to cover the side circumferential surface of the moldingform. At this time, the fabric 2 is so placed, as shown in FIG. 7-b,that its outside is turned inside, and its inside appears on thesurface. The parts of the fabric which correspond to the inside of theslacks are sewn together with the front and back in a U-shape as shownby the dotted line 7 in the drawing. Then, it is cut open at the line 8to make a slacks-like product. The slacks-like product is turned insideout, and mounted on the molding form 1 shown in FIG 7-a. A tension isapplied to the product in the directions of its open ends to fit thefabric to the side circumferential surface of the molding form. It isthen heat-set under this tension, and removed from the molding form. Ifdesired, it is subjected to simple finishing to make slacks.

Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 7-0, the back and front portions of theslacks are sewn together at the inside center (broken line 7 in thedrawing) with the outside of the tubular knitted fabric appearing on thesurface, and then the fabric is mounted on the molding form 1. It isthen molded in the same way and then cut open at the part shown by 7 inthe drawing. The cut portion is subjected to post-treatment to obtainslacks.

As shown in FIG. 7-d-1 (schematic perspective view) and FIG. 7-d-2(sectional view taken along the line A-A' of FIG. 7d-1), the knittedfabric is mounted on the molding form 1 so as to cover its sidecircumferential surface, and a tension is exerted on the fabric 2 in thedirection of its open ends to decrease the size of the fabric until itfits to the molding form 1. As shown in FIG. 7-d-3 (sectional view takenalong the line A-A'), the knitted fabric at the front and back of theslacks is set for example by pushing it with a heated pressure at thespace 9 between the leg portions of the slacks. The molding of theslacks along the leg portions is thus accomplished. The inside 9 of themolded fabric is then cut open, and subjected to necessarypost-treatment to make slacks.

FIG. 7-e is a perspective View showing one example of a molding form formaking a skirt. The tubular knitted fabric is mounted on the moldingform 1 so as to cover its side circumferential surface, and a tension isexerted on the fabric in the direction of the open ends of the fabric todecrease the size of the fabric until it fits to the sidecircumferential surface of the molding form 1. The fabric is thenheat-set under this tension condition, and removed from the moldingform 1. If desired, it is subjected to simple finishing to make a skirt.

In order to make a garment with sleeves, the main part of the garment isproduced by the procedure mentioned above, and sleeves are separatelyproduced in the same way using a molding form for production of sleeves.Subsequent attaching of the sleeves to the main part of the garmentgives the desired garment with sleeves. It will be readily understoodthat in the case of producing sleeveless garments such as no-sleevegarments or waist coats, the above-mentioned main part of the garmentcan be a product itself.

The production of sleeves in accordance with the pres ent invention willbe described with reference to the ac companying drawings.

As the seamline of the sleeves is about 10% longer than that of thearmhole of the body because of the fullness of the arm, the stitching ofsleeves to the armhole is performed after adjusting the length of theseam line by ease-threads at a part 23 mm. inside of the seam allowanceof the sleeves, followed by ironing and easing. Since the amount offullness of the arms differs according to directions, the amount of casemust naturally be changed according to place. Furthermore, since theseam allowance part becomes a gather by tacking, the sleeve stitchingrequires a high level of technique and is time consuming. Consequently,it has been difficult to produce garments efficiently.

As the sleeves in accordance with the present invention are made bysqueezing a tubular knitted fabric at the connecting part of a connectedsleeve-making molding form (1a, 1b) in which the sleeve-attaching jointparts have been eased (see FIG. 8-a), they are already eased.Furthermore, as the seam allowance for sleeve attachment is flat, it isVery simple to attach the sleeves. The fitting of the tubular knittedfabric to the molding form is due to the stretchability of the knittedfabric. Since a tension on the respective parts of the knitted fabricduring stretching of the fabric is relatively uniform, the individualyarns of the resulting sleeves have equal properties at the respectiveparts, and the resulting sleeves have uniform quality and feel andappearance.

FIG. 8-a shows the mounting of a tubular knitted fabric 2 opened at bothends (sectional view so as to permit a good look at the sleeve moldingform) on the sleeve mold form (shown three-dimensionally) composed oftwo sleeve mold forms 1a and lab.

The sleeve molding form used consists of two sleeve molding forms 1a and1b joined to each other with a distance of at least 1 cm. at the jointpart 11 while allowing a cavity 14 as shown in FIG. 8-a. The fabric iseased at the joint part 11' allowing the fullness of the movement of thearms, and seam allowance. These two sleeve molding forms are joined by asuitable means such as screwing or fitting, and are separable from eachother. At the joint part 13, the tubular knitted fabric 2 is tied withan openable ring or cord 21 (FIG. 8-b). A tension is exerted on thefabric by pulling it in the directions of the open ends until thediameter of the tubular knitted fabric is reduced to the minimumdiameter of the sleeve molding form, and the fabric is fitted to themolding form. Then, the fabric is held by pins 22 as shown in FIG. 8b atboth ends, and heat-set in this state to the shape of the sleeve. Bychanging the shape of the molding form, various sleeves such as tightsleeves, shirt sleeves, or puff sleeves can be made.

The molded knitted fabric is cut at the joint part 13, and the mold formIn is separated from the molding form 1b. The molded fabric is pulledout of each molding form. These sleeves, after having been subjected toordinary finishing, have a similar appearance to ordinary sleeves andbeautiful silhouette.

In the making of garments of the invention, the circumferential lengthof the transverse section of the tubular knitted fabric may be variedaccording to the shape of the molding form. It can however be any sizewhich can assure the fitting of the fabric to the molding form accordingto the degree of decrease in size of the fabric due to the knit textureof the fabric used upon application of a tension, and is properly chosenaccording to the knitted fabrics and molding forms to be used.Generally, in the production of garments which cover the upper half ofthe body or the entire body such as upper garments, overcoats, sweaters,blouses, one-piece dresses, jumpers, or waist coats, it is preferredthat the circumferential length l of tubular knitted fabrics should belonger than the minimum circumferential length a (usually, the lengtharound the neck) of the molding form, and not more than 1 times theminimum circumferential length. Usually, it s not more than 200 cm. Thispreferred range is shown in FIG. 9-12 by the hatched portion. In thecase of garments which cover the bottom half of the body such as slacksor skirts, it is preferred that the circumferential length of tubularknitted fabric should be longer than the minimum circumferential lengthof the molding form (usually, the length around the waist) and not morethan the minimum circumferential length. When sleeve moldlng forms areused, the circumferential length of the transverse section of theknitted fabric should preferably be longer than the minimumcircumferential length of the sleeve molding form (usually, the lengtharound the cuff), and not more than 2 and a half times the minimumcircumferential length. Usually, it is not more than 50 cm. Thispreferred range is shown by the hatching in FIG.

The garments of knitted fabrics according to the present lnventiondevelop a unique pattern not seen in conventionalgarment's produced bythe conventional technique lncludmg cutting and sewing steps, and havelittle or no darts or sewn parts as compared with the conventionalgarments. The presence of such unique pattern distinguishes the garmentsof the invention from other garments.

FIGS. l0-a-1, l0a2, and 10-b schematically show one example of aone-piece dress of the invention. FIG. l0-a-2 is a front view of theone-piece dress; FIG. l0-

7 2-a, its plan (seen from above the neck); and FIG. l-b, a front viewof another example of a one-piece dress of the invention.

As shown in FIGS. l0-a-l, 10-a-2, and 10b, the onepiece dress of theinvention has an interesting pattern in which dots or checks vary at thebosom, waist, and bottom parts as a result of the enlargement ordecrease of the knit texture that has been caused by fitting the fabricto the molding form.

Now, one example of the apparatus for mounting a knitted fabric on themolding form in the production of the garments of the invention will bedescribed below.

FIG. 1l-a is a side cross-sectional view of the apparatus, and FIG. 11b,its plan view taken along the line cc. FIG. 12 is a partial, sideelevation of one example of a hold mechanism for holding the edgeportions of the tubular knitted fabric.

Referring to FIGS. 11-a and 11-12, tubular knitted fabric 2 is fed tothe outer peripheral surface of a tubular member 24 via a pair of feedrollers 23. The tubular member 24 is provided with rotating rollers 25at its peripheral surface, and adapted to convey the knitted fabric 2continuously (downwardly in the drawing) by the rotation of driverollers 26 which are in contact with the rollers 25. By delivery rollers27, the tubular knitted fabric 2 is moved on the tubular member 24, andits end 28 is held by a hold member 29. This hold member 29 is freelystretchable in the direction of arrow A by a joint shaft 30 which isconnected thereto, for instance by using an air cylinder 31. As shown inFIG. 12, the hold member 29 can be opened so that it can hold the end ofthe knitted fabric 2 by a fixed nail 34b at the forward end of the shaft34d and a nail 34a movable with a pin 340 as a fulcrum. The constructionof the hold member may be changed as desired as long as it serves itsfunction. The reference numerals 33 and 33 are slide bearings of thestretchable shaft 30.

The knitted fabric whose peripheral edges at the open ends are held in aradial fashion or substantially flat condition is spread to any desiredwidth by controlling the stretchable shaft 30 connected to the holdmember. Thereafter, a lift 32 movable up and down in the direction ofarrow B is caused to go down to a point just below the lower end 35 ofthe molding form 1, and then the fabric is cut at a point slightly abovethe upper end of the fabric. The hold member is then disengaged. As aresult, the knitted fabric 2 can be automatically mounted on the moldingform so as to cover its side circumferential surface. The lift 32 isthen again raised, and the same procedure is repeated using anothermolding form. It is thus possible to mount knitted fabrics continuouslyon the molding form.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, means for elevating or dropping thelift 32 is not shown, but any suitable means may be used which includesfor instance an actuating means with the provision of guide rails.

In the above-described embodiment, the tubular member 24 is providedabove the molding form 1, and the lift 32 is caused to ascend ordescend. In an alternative embodiment, a tubular member 24 may beprovided below the molding form, and a tubular knitted fabric isconveyed from below.

According to the present invention, an apparatus is provided formounting a tubular knitted fabric on a molding form so as to cover itsside circumferential surface, which comprises a tubular member 24 havinga conveying means which permits the passing of a tubular knitted fabricthereover; and a plurality of hold means disposed at positions whichpermit the holding of the edges of the open ends of the tubular knittedfabric delivered from the tubular member, such hold means beingsupported radially on a reciprocable stand having an opening larger thanthe sectional area of the molding form and movable beyond the bottom endof the molding form surrounding 8 the molding form, and beingstretchable in the direction of the diameter of the tubular knittedfabric.

The relative positions of the tubular member and the molding form may beturned upside down or set in an oblique relationship. If they are in anupside-down relationship, the term bottom end of the molding form refersto the end of the neck portion of the molding form in FIG. l1-a, forexample.

The present invention will be further described by the followingExamples.

EXAMPLE 1 A dyed yarn consisting of a blend of 45% polyester and 55%cotton count) was knitted into a welt ripple texture, and finished byscouring to form a tubular knitted fabric having a length of 55 cm. anda circumference of 92 cm. The resulting tubular knitted fabric wasmounted on a molding form having a neck size of 40 cm., a bust of 96cm., a high waist of 90 cm., a bottom of 106 cm., and a total length of55 cm. After mounting, the part not situated along the neck was heldwith clips at one part of the from center and two parts of the back, sothat the tubular knitted fabrics was fitted along the molding form at apart ranging from the shoulder to the neck. By this operation, thetubular knitted fabric mounted on the molding form shrunk by about 5 cm.in the warp direction of the fabric. The bottom end of the fabric washeld by a hook, and pulled downwardly to stretch it by about 5 cm. inthe warp direction, thereby fitting the tubular knitted fabric close tothe molding form.

Then, in this state, the tabular knitted fabric was heattreated by dryheat at 180 C. for 10 minutes to set the configuration of the knittedfabric, followed by cooling. The fabric was then cut open at the frontcenter line, and removed from the molding form. Then, the fabric wasfinished by strapping the darts, attaching a neck, facing the armhole,etc. to make a womans suit opened at the front. The suit had a beautifulsilhouette.

EXAMPLE 2 A yarn consisting of a blend of polyester and cotton (40count) was knitted into a ponti roma texture, and then scoured. The waledirection of the knitted fabric was caused to conform to thelongitudinal direction of a tube, a tubular knitted fabric having acircumferential length of cm. was made. The knitted fabric obtained wasmounted on a skirt molding form, and stretched in the wale direction andshrunk in the course direction to fit the fabric close to the skirtmolding form. The fabric was then heat-set by dry heat at 180 C. for 10minutes. The molded fabric was cut open at the back center line, andremoved from the molding form. It was subjected to a finishing treatmentincluding the attachment of a belt, 01; a fastener, or bottom binding tomake a semi-flared s irt.

EXAMPLE 3 Two false-twisted nylon yarns (20 denier/3 filaments) weredoubled to make a yarn (40 denier/6 filaments). This yarn was knittedinto a fabric. The fabric was made into a tubular knitted fabric inwhich the wale direction was caused to conform to the longitudinaldirection of the tube. The knitted fabric had a circumferential length(l) of 130 cm., and a length of cm. The tubular knitted fabric wasmounted on a molding form, and then an annular hold member was placed onthe neck portion of the molding form. The tubular knitted fabric wasstretched in the wale direction to fit the fabric close to the moldingform. In this case, the minimum length (a) around the neck was 40 cm.,the waist was 65 cm., and the bottom was cm. In this case, l=2.25a. Inthis state, the tubular knitted fabric was heat-treated by wet heat at130 C. for 20 minutes, and the annular hold member was removed. Themolded fabric was out along the back center line, and removed from themolding form. After finishing, a lining of a one-piece dress fitted wellto the body was made.

EXAMPLE 4 A false-twisted polyester yarn (150 denier/30 filaments) wasknitted into a milano rib texture, scoured, and dyed. The fabric wasmade into a tubular knitted fabric having a circumference of 96 cm. anda length of 80 cm. in which the wale direction of the knit fabricconformed to the longitudinal direction of the tubular fabric.

The tubular knitted fabric was folded as shown in FIG. 6-a.Specifically, the length between the shoulder point A of the front part(upper fabric in the drawing) and the shoulder point A was made largerthan the back part (the bottom fabric in the drawing) by the left andright overlaps, the seam allowance and the front shoulder, and adjustedto 49 cm. As a result, the length between A and A in the bottom fabricwas 47 cm. At the portion corresponding to the circumferential length ofthe neck, the front part (upper fabric) was made larger than the backpart (lower fabric) by the right and left overlaps and seam allowance,and the length B -B of the upper fabric was adjusted to 26 cm. As aresult, the length B -B of the lower fabric was 20 cm. In the same way,the tubular knitted fabric was folded so that either at points C -(C 2cm. above B (B in the longitudinal direction of the tubular knittedfabric or at C (C on the upper fabric, the length C -C on the upperfabric was 26 cm., and the length C C on the bottom fabric was 20 cm. Asshown in FIG. 6-a, D10(D1o Was prOVided So that BmCmDm (B 'C 'D was 80,and the upper and bottom fabrics were sewn together y line 1o 10 1o( 10'10' 1o')- 1o 1u( 10' 10') corresponded to the shoulder seam of theresulting garment. B C D (B 'C 'D served for the purpose of making, acollar, and B C (B 'C was to be the stand.

As shown in FIG. 6-1:, the outside of AIOBIOCIODIU lo' io' ro' m') ofthe tubular knitted fabric was trimmed to provide a seam allowance of 1cm., and the edge of the upper end of D D was cut in a semi-circularshape. Thereafter, the tubular knitted fabric 2 was turned inside out,and mounted on the molding form 1 as shown in FIG. 6c. The molding form1 had a neck circumference of 46 cm., a bust of 96 cm., a high waist of90 cm., a bottom of 134 cm., and a total length of 55 cm. About 25 cm.of the upper end of the tubular knitted fabric 2 was held at 10 placesby hooks 11, and fixed in a condition pulled from the center towards theoutside as shown in the drawing as a collar forming part. The edge ofthe lower end was held by hooks to 20 places. The fabric was pulled 10downwardly in the warp direction to stretch it about 10 cm. and fit thefabric 2 close to the molding form 1. In this state, the fabric washeat-treated by dry heat at C. for 10 minutes. After cooling, the fabricwas cut open at the front center line, and removed from the molding formby releasing the hooks 5 and 11.

After removal, the molded fabric was finished by sewing collar, facing,buttons, or lining, etc. to produce a womans suit with a beautifulsilhouette, as shown in FIG. 6-d.

What we claim is:

1. A method for the production of a garment for covering the upper halfof the body, bottom half of the body or the entire body, of knittedfabric, which comprises:

(a) mounting on a molding form in a shape of said garment so as to coverand contact the side circumferential surface of said molding form, atubular nonfull-fashioned knitted fabric opened at both ends, at least30% of said fabric being composed of a thermoplastic synthetic fiber;

(b) tensioning said knitted fabric in the direction of its open endsonly to thereby decrease the size of said tubular knitted fabric in thedirection of diameter until said fabric fits to the side circumferentialsurface of said molding form;

(0) heat-setting the tubular knitted fabric under the application ofsaid tension; and

(d) thereafter removing the molded fabric from said molding form.

2. The method of Claim 1, wherein the circumferential surface at thetransverse section of said tubular knitted fabric is longer than theminimum circumferential length of the molding form and is not more than4 times said minimum circumferential length.

3. The method of Claim 1, wherein before or after the mounting of theknitted fabric on the molding form, that part of the knitted fabricwhich covers a curved surface ranging from the neck to the shoulder ofthe molding form is subjected to dart treatment so that to fit it to themolding form.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,527,858 9/1970 Braxton et a1.264324 3,655,858 4/1972 Wincklhofer et a1. 264-324 3,673,611 7/1972 Cainet a1. 264-3324 ROBERT F. WHITE, Primary Examiner T. E. BALHOFF,Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 264-231, 324

3 v f i J-Jiltfli, v'

UNITED STATES oFFIcE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION I Patent No. 3,819,638'Dated June 25, 1974 Inventor (s) Kd'zyoshi OGAWA ET AL I I Q 7 It iscertified that error appears in the above-identified patent and thatsaid Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

In the Heading, cancel "Claims priority, application Japan, Oct. 10,1970', 45/92 ,212" and substitute the following:

-- Claims priority, application Japan, Oct. 20, 1970,

4'S/92,2l2;'application Japan, Dec. 25 1970, 45/117,538;

application Japan, Dec, 26, 1.970, 45/129,794; application Japan, Mar.15, '19-71, 46/14,2'6lgf application- Japan, Mar. 16.,

Signed and sealed this 71:1'1 day of January 19 75.

(SEAL) Attest: v v I v McCOY M. GIBSON JR. v c. MARSHALL DANN. AttestingOfficer Y a Commissioner of Patents 3, I 4 I usco'MM-oc ooan r-ws

